Symons: I’ll prove point to my old club (From Worcester News)

Symons: I’ll prove point to my old club

1:00pm Wednesday 21st December 2011 in Steve Carley By Steve Carley, @stevecarleyWN #WENsport

EVERY time Mike Symons scores a goal for Worcester City, I wonder if manager Carl Heeley affords himself a little smile?

For the player deemed not good enough for rivals Gloucester City is turning into something of a cult hero at St George’s Lane.

Last Saturday, the fans were chanting the striker’s name from the terraces as he notched his 12th goal of the season in the 2-0 victory at Colwyn Bay.

Not bad for a player who only managed 25 in three campaigns for the Tigers and just seven in the whole of 2010/11.

Heeley always said Symons would score goals for Worcester when he snapped him up on a one-year deal in the summer and he has been proved correct.

Indeed, the 25-year-old has become a crucial component in City’s rise to seventh in Blue Square Bet North and their push for the play-offs. All of this adds an intriguing sub-plot to the two games against Symons’ former employers over the Christmas break.

The striker said: “I had two good years at Gloucester and helped them get promoted but last year I just had one of those off-seasons when I was playing pretty well but just didn’t score the goals. The manager made a decision to release me so you have to live with it.

“I still want to prove a point there but I am just going to go into the game like I have in every other season so far and hopefully produce if I get selected.”

He might be playing the situation down, but you can bet the Hartpury College coach is desperate to add to his tally at St George’s Lane on Boxing Day and in the return on New Year’s Day.

“I am really looking forward to it,” he said. “It will be a fine atmosphere at our ground because we have got great support at Worcester and the fans were fantastic at Colwyn Bay as well. They made the day very special and hopefully they can take that on to the Boxing Day game.”

Following his hat-trick at Histon back in August, Symons, who has been troubled by a nerve in his back in recent weeks, talked of bagging 20 goals and he is well on the way to that target with half of the season still to go.

The aim now is to supply the firepower needed to keep Heeley’s team in the hunt for a play-off place come April.

Symons added: “I am chuffed to bits compared to last year because I had only scored five or six by this time so to have 12 is very good. We have got two big games over Christmas and if we get two wins it puts us right amongst it for the last few months of the season.

“That would give us the boost into January and February and if you’re there or thereabouts with two or three months to go you’ve got that extra motivation to push on for the play-offs.”